Module 1 – Journalism Basics

Part 1 – Gathering information

How journalists gather information for their stories? Here’s a quick read to know the basics.

If you’re tasked to write an article that requires including statistics or research findings, this guide by Panos London gives a how-to on how to gather that kind of information (read pg 2-4).

Part 2 – Attribution

Why do we need to attribute? For credibility and to make our stories more reliable and stronger.

Aren’t we credible in the first place? Of course, we are credible! However, we still need an expert to talk about specific concepts. Unless we have an expert with the team, e.g. Pauline as chef, or doctors, it’s a must to cite sources. An important part of our job as journalists is to translate expert speak into layman’s terms, making uninteresting tidbits of information digestible.

But watch out. Are we sure that our source is credible enough? It helps to do a background check.

How do we attribute? How do we make information digestible?

Direct quoting
Paraphrasing
Combination of a direct quote and a paraphrase.

AP Style

The use of “said.” Use “said” and not its synonyms because other words might insinuate another meaning.
Punctuation. Commas and periods go inside the quote.
The use of “according to” is acceptable when used in reference to written sources (newspapers). Use “said” when referring to people.
Partial quotes. They are usually an impactful part of a long sentence.

What are the things to be attributed?

Facts not in dispute. When it’s a universally accepted fact, then there’s no need to attribute.
Reporter’s observations.
Multiple sources. When three or more credible sources say the same thing, we can consider it as factual.
“He said, she said” shows comparisons or disagreements and adds noise to a story. Reserve it to narrative stories.

Recording

On the record.
Off the record. Anything in the interview that’s off the record is for the reporter’s use only and cannot be published.
On background when sources can’t be directly attributed to a specific person (e.g. a PR guy gives a piece of info approved by their company, but you need to attribute Company XXX)
Not for attribution. “A (high-ranking/senior) official in the XXX government agency,” “a journalist at beijingkids.” In short, the interviewee agrees to be attributed but not be named.
Anonymous sources. Try to avoid them for regular stories — unless we do an investigative or police reports, or when naming endangers interviewees’ lives. Always explain why they chose to be anonymous

Is over-attributing bad?

Unless you’re writing an academic paper, then over-attribution is sort of pompous. In blogs, hyperlinks can be used as much as we want. But do they make sense? While we want our articles to be reliable and credible, an ideal practice is to limit attributions to the most important sources (two or three) and hyperlink background information.

Part 3 – Interviews

Outline everything

Define your message. What do you want to say? Why do you want to say that? How will you say that (in what form? Charts? Photographs? 300-word narratives?)
Make a framework of your article, especially if it needs more sources.
Plan the logistics: location, time, editorial requirements, model release; follow standard operating procedures (SOPs)

Human sources

Get the background info of your interviewees.

Face to face? Phone? Email?

Decide which one works for you and your deadline.
Face-to-face works best in most cases as you interact with your interviewee and see body gestures.
A phone (or Skype) interview is ideal when your interviewee is away/overseas. But one issue is noise or garbled messages.
An email interview is best for quick stories but usually tends to be dry and manufactured.

Be prepared.

Prepare everything – from documents and charts to notebooks to recorders. For email interviews, use hyperlinks and show charts.
Always have a backup.

Be sneaky. Work your interviewee up.

Make a connection. What is that something that connects the both of you?
“Tell us who you are.”
Boring and laconic responses? Ask whys and open-ended questions. Instead of asking questions, have them share a story. Remember that we want stories, not manufactured quotes.
Reword your questions.
Listen to keywords.

Clarify unclear statements. Review notes. Say “Thank you.”

Go back to questions that you feel are not answered thoroughly.
When summarizing, go back to your notes and tell them the things they said by using the keywords you gather. Chances are they will elaborate their response, or that keyword will evoke a memory of a story or make your interviewee remember something.
Move your new connection forward by saying “Thank you” to your interviewee — after the interview. Send them a copy of the column/blog.

The following links are a great resource when you need to interview for your articles:
1. 30 Tips on How to Interview Like a Journalist
2. The Art of the Interview – Columbia Journalism Review